Clinton Hints Compromise On Employer Health-insurance Mandates

June 15, 1994|By Knight-Ridder/Tribune.

WASHINGTON — His health-care bill battered by business opposition, President Clinton signaled to key senators Tuesday that he's willing to consider alternatives to his formula for requiring employers to pay most of their workers' medical insurance.

In the House, the Ways and Means Committee fell in behind Clinton by voting 20-18 to uphold an insurance requirement on employers. And in remarks to a women's group, Hillary Rodham Clinton raised the possibility that abortion coverage could be dropped to get health reform through Congress.

Clinton met for an hour with Sens. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) and Bob Packwood (R-Ore.) at the White House, with the session focusing on the so-called employer mandate.

Packwood said the president showed interest in a proposal he made to put off for three years a decision on the mandate.

Under Packwood's compromise, Congress would enact reforms to make insurance more affordable and available, and also provide subsidies for workers in small firms. After three years-if large numbers of Americans were still without health insurance-the compromise would guarantee a congressional vote on forcing employers to pay for coverage.

Packwood said he could write the compromise to make the employer requirement automatic, unless Congress votes it down. Senate Democrats said that's closer to the kind of guarantee they're looking for.

White House aides said Clinton is not backing away from his commitment to coverage for all, but is willing to look at other approaches. "We're flexible on how you get there, but we're not flexible on the bottom line," said an administration staffer. A spokeswoman said the administration is not sure that Packwood's proposal is the answer.

"This nation is going to come to universal coverage one day," Packwood said. "We will come to it in three, four, five years. Is that a long time in the history of the republic?"

Packwood said he based his proposal on procedures that Congress has successfully used to handle extremely controversial legislation, like major trade agreements and military base closings.

About 39 million people lack health coverage, most of them in working families. Employees of small businesses are much more likely to be uninsured. Clinton's plan would require businesses to pay 80 percent of the cost of workers' health insurance, with substantial discounts for small firms.

Moynihan and Packwood are key players in health reform by virtue of their positions in Congress. Moynihan chairs the tax-writing Finance Committee, and Packwood is its ranking Republican.

The Finance Committee has a bipartisan tradition, and compromises reached there stand a good chance of passage in the Senate. But it's not even clear that the committee will be able to vote out a bill.

"There is not now a majority for any health-care reform plan in the Senate Finance Committee," Moynihan said. Packwood said Clinton asked them to put off voting on competing plans and keep trying to reach an agreement.